Envelope



(Mode1.)

J, O. DONNELL.

No. 408,604. Patented May 21, 1889.

WITNESSES:

ATTORNEYS.

N. PETERS. Fhola-Lzlllogmpher. Washingmn, 12:0.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. 1

JOHN O. DONNELL, OF LOWVVILLE, NEW YORK.

ENVELOPE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 403,604, dated May 21, 1889. Application filed February 17, 1888. Serial No. 264,356. (ModeL) To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J OHN O. DONNELL, of Lowville, in the county of Lewis and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Envelopes, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention has for its object the production of an envelope which, unlike ordinary envelopes, cannot be opened by a pencil or other instrument, and which will protect letters, or the envelopes containing them, from being surreptitiously opened and resealed.

To this end the invention consists in a triple-sealed safety-envelope, substantially as hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 represents a view in perspective of the envelope fully open-=that is, before its parts are secured in position to receive a letter or other inclosure; Fig. 2, a face View of the envelope ready for receiving its inclosure and as partly closed, and Fig. 3 a face View of the blank of or from which the envelope is made. Both Figs. 2 and S are upon a reduced scale to Fig. 1.

A indicates what may be termed the body portion of the blank, which latter, as repre sented in Fig. 3, is made with a wing, B, of a size and shape so that when folded down or over on the dotted line b it will cover said body part A and extend about half an inch, more or less, beyond the folding line 0, which is parallel with the line I). Said wing B is preferably square, or as nearly so as the shape of the envelope will permit, with its portion (Z, which extends beyond the line 0 when said wing is folded down, upon the portion A. The dotted line 6 in Fig. 3 indicates where this extension portion is afterward folded.

C C are side wings projecting from the body portion A. These side wings are cut so as to come, when folded upon the lines ff, up to or nearly up to the folding line 0, lapping in the center one-fourth of an inch, more or less. On the margin of the body portion A, where the line a is drawn, is still another wing, D, which is preferably long enough to wrap around the body and other portions of the envelope, when folded, one or more times, said wing D, when being thus wrapped, folding upon the folding line 0 and upon another transverse line, g, and being provided at its outer end with an exterior flap or lip, h, which is designed to be'folded upon the line 2'. Similar letters apply to the folds in Figs. 1 and 2 as are used upon the dotted lines in Fig. 3, which indicate where the folds are made.

The envelope-blank having been constructed and made to fold as hereinbefore described, gum or other adhesive material is applied, as at s, all along the inside marginal portions of the wings C O, likewise upon the end marginal portions, preferably on the outside and inside of the wing B and along the marginal portions of the wing D, as shown at s, and upon the inside face of the inner part of the wing D, as at and upon the inner face of the marginal portion of the outer end foldingflap portion h of said wing D, as shown at s. The envelope or its blank is now folded first upon the line or fold Z); next, the wings O O are folded upon the lines or folds f f, down upon and over the outside of the wing B, and securely sealed by the gummed parts 8 s, Fig. 1. The portion (Z is now doubled down upon the line or fold 6, covering and doublesealing the tops of the Wings 0 O and their lap in the center. The wings C 0 being now sealed down on three sides to the wing B and the body A, besides the extra sealing of the extended portion (1, which covers the Wings 0 0, makes three distinct sealings to be broken before the inside of the envelope is reached, in case of an attempt to open the envelope surreptitiously by the wings. The envelope is now in a condition to receive a letter or other inclosure in the pocket thus formed between the portions A and B. The gummed portions 8 s are then moistened to seal the wing D as it is folded on the line or fold c, first over the exposed surface of the projection d and Wings 0 C, and then being doubled down on the line or fold g, and finally on the line or fold 2', which, in case the wingD is extended, brings the sealing portion h of the wing D over the reverse side of the envelope. The gumming s is of a shape corresponding to the shape of the portion d, but extends about one-fourth of an inch, more or less, beyond it when the wing D is closed or folded, so that when finally sealed said gumming or gumlned portion s flnot only seals down upon the portion (1, butbey'ond it, thus double-sealing the envelope, besides again sealing the ends of' the wings. By the extension of the wing D so as to fold around the envelope the contents of the envelope cannot be read by holding it up to the light, and said wing may be used as a blank for writing or printing, and for advertising, or for a telegraph-blank.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In safety-envelopes, the body portion A, having folding sealing side wings, C G, afolding wing, B, sealed to the body portion, said side wings; C C, sealed upon the wing B, an elongated folding wing adapted to wrap once or more around the main portion of the envelope, and having sealing or adhesive material s arranged to seal overthe upper ends of the side wings, 0 0,- and provided with a folding and'sealingouter end portion, h, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. A safetyenvelope with an extending wing arranged to be folded once or more times about the main or body portion of the envelope, said wing provided with a supplemental gumming-surface, 3 adapted to be sealed to the body portion over the upper open end of the same, and a folding and sealing outer end, h, arranged to seal on the said wing portion over the aforesaid sealed portion 8 substantially as; and for the purpose described.

JOHN o. DONNELLD Witnesses:

M. J. Woon, KATE VALK. 

